Sleeping car



R. A. SHIELDS SLEEPING CAR 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 25, 1946 Aug. 21, 41951 vR, A. sHlELDs SLEEPING CAR 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 25, 1946 INVENTOR Win/.M

Aug. 2l, 1951 R, A. sHlELns 2,564,732

SLEEPING CAR Filed July 25, 194e 5 sheets-sheet 4 Aug. 21, 1951 l R. A. sHn-:LDs 2,564,732

SLEEPING CAR Filed July 25, 194'6 5 sheets-sheet 5 INVENTOR Wan/M 'leach containing two vertically movable Patented Aug. 21, 1951 Unirse smiles PATENT oserei;

Robert A. Shields, Bloomsburg, MPa., assgnor to American Car" an'dV Foundry Companml New YYirkflill SY.; a 'corporation yof New ersey @pagina esta 1946, semina. 686,243

enrayer-son. To date, however, sleeping 'accende modations of the room type adaptedionoccupancy by more than one person have been rather expensive. In `certain' cases single occupancy rooms havebeen'occupied by two' people-but siieh an varrangement is extremely uncomfortable" nd 'the railroads cannot charge f or'the extrap son since no true Iaceommodations have been iro- Vided- Since it OStSthe railroads, ,aeltam amountto'haul Va car, Ait is obviousgthatthe greaterthe inumlcyer of passengers.r the Vlowerfthe rate perfperson canbe charged, while atl the same 4time returning a Vgreater revenue 'to the railroad. It is an object, therefore, of the present invention to provide av sleeping car having rooms on either side'of the aisle of singleoccupanoy size, yet having accommodations fortwo persons.

A further objectY of the invention 'is the provision`of a sleepingcar having singlefo cupancy size 'rooms withtwo lbeds therein.

v`A still further object 'ofthe invention is the provision of a railwaycar having completeroo'ms beds.

Yet'another object O f th invention is. ,theprovision of arailwayl car having 'vertically movable `beds which remain horizontal' at alll times Vand are rigidly supported at four points whenvin a sleeping position.

yStill another object of the inventionvis'the provision of vertically movable' bed'snarriedby ,screw means andequipped with slot closers'which 'hide the screw 'operating means.

These and other 'objects of the vinvention ,will be apparent to persons skilled in vthe art from a study of thefollowingdescription and aoeompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a `sectional-view taken through the carv and showing the rooms in plan;

Fig. 2 is anelevational VView of one end wall l:of aroom ywith parts removed to better show the construction .and with beds shown in` their lowered position;

Fig. 3is an elevational. sectional view staken through the room ,andshowing vtheaisle vvalL-oi .the room;

' Fig. 4 is a sectional view .similar to-lig. z bnt ei. v1o5-3i5) '2 lEig. ,5 is an enlarged `pla'nview of theroom; Eigl 6 is va. similar'enlarged 4`plan view 'showing thefbed onerating means; "L L` Fig. 'Tis'an enlarged detail view taken substantially on line 1 1' of Fig. s andgsnowingthe bedf'sup'nort and slot closer; rjg. 8`is a sectional view taken substantially on im@ s-s of Fig. r1;'

Fig. "9 is an'enl'arged detail view showing the nested` relationship of thebeds during raising'or 1. Werng lFi'g; 10 is a sectional view takenltl'irough the room partition and showing the'bed in itssleepmg pstom flfig. 1l is a detail View showing the lockmeans for the upper bed, and

Fig l2 is a sectional View taken vtl'irough the room 'partition and showing 'the 1 s l`ing" means for nijbeds. @Referring now to the drawings indetail, it will be seen that'the car Yis built with side' walls e. end/ walls 6, floor 8 and roof I0; Located' inside thecar arelongitndinally extending'aisle walls ft2' ving openingsftherein preferably 'closedby slidingld'oors I4. Extending betweenthe side walls and theadjacent aisle Walls are'V spaced fpartitiojn walls'l't which, together with y theffear anLmediCi-rie Cabinet AS-Shoriitha-warden@ and. folding wash basin smits are located alpes the aisle Wa1 1 91.1 @ber Side gf .the Sliema 110er :1 4- s .Sham the @Peanuts are preferably .arranedadiaeentteach @herrin adi'aea foams 'ifi .si'de that the Plilmbia may .be s .fl el It is Obi/i011@ 0f cwrseifhgwever,.mettesse 1mi S .may-beamed along the Qgterside Wall' e *"'s shown the bees indicated at B #i and B Y 3 #2 are of identical size and extend substantially from one partition Wall I6 to the opposite partition wall I6. The partition walls at one end of the room are provided with slots 20 located closer to the side walls and aisle walls than are slots 22 formed in the partition wall I6 at the opposite end of the room and as shown in Fig. 4. Bed B #l is provided at one end with widely spaced arms 24 extending through slots 20, while bed B #2 is provided at one end with arms 26 extending through the same slots 20. The opposite ends of beds B #l and B #2 are provided with closer spaced arms 28 and 30 respectively extending through slots 22. The arms 24 and 28 of each lower bed B #l are internally threaded to engage the threads 32 of lead screws 36 rotatably mounted at their lower ends in blocks 38 and guided at their upper ends by-shaft supports 40. The shaft supports 40 and blocks 38 are fastened to and tie the partition wall I6 of adjacent rooms together, Vthereby reinforcing the partitions while at the same time forming supports for the lead screws 36. The arms 26 and 30 of the upper bed B #2 are provided with smooth holes 42 therethrough, which holes are adapted to closely engage the outer surface of threads 32 in order that the lead screws 36 may guide the arms 26 and 38. Each arm 26 and 30 is also provided with an extension 44 adapted to engage a conical extension 46 formed on the upper surface of arms 24 and 28 of the lower bed B #1. The arms 24 and 28 of bed B #l are identical, while the arms 26 and 36 of bed B #2 are also identical except that arms 26 are provided with outwardly projecting stop lugs 48, while arms 30 are provided with inwardly projecting stop lugs 50.

In order to rotate the lead screws 36 for each room in unison they have fastened thereto at their upper ends bevel gears 52 adapted to engage bevel gears 54 carried on transverse shafts 56. The transverse shafts 56 are also provided with intermediate bevel gears 58 adapted to mesh with bevel gears fastened to a longitudinally extending intermediate shaft 60. One of the transverse shafts or the longitudinal shaft 60 is driven directly by a motor 62. This motor may be of small fractional horse power due to the use of the gearing and lead screws. It is obvious that with all of the lead screws 36 for each room interconnected by gearing or similar means, they r must rotate in unison thereby causing the arms 24 and 28 of the bed B #l to be moved in a vertical direction in unison thereby holding bed B #l always horizontal. Rotation of motor 62 will, of course, be under control of a push button or other type switch located in the room with which the motor is associated.

Since the lead screws 36 will positively hold bed B #l in any position in which it is stopped, no locks will be necessary for bed B #1. Bed B #2, however, since it is not connected to the lead screws but merely slides therealong, must be equipped with locks or other holding means to keep it from being lowered when it is desired to sell the room to a single person. Arms 26 of bed B #2 may be locked in their upper or raised position by means of a transversely sliding bolt 'l0 actuated by lever 12 connected by cables or other means 14 to a cam member 'i6 accessible from the inside of the room. The sliding bolt 'l0 when thrown into locking position as shown in Fig. 11 will engage beneath stop ledge 48 of arm 26. Arms 3|] at the opposite end of the bed B #2 will be held in raised position by means of sliding 4 bolts engaging beneath stops 50 of arms 30. The sliding bolts 80 may be simultaneously operated by means of linkage 82 connected to a throw arm 84 controlled by a key or other means from the inside of the room. The locking means for the upper bed B #2 is shown in the unlocked position in Fig. 2 and in the locked position in Fig. 4. It will be obvious that with the locks as shown it will be necessary to insert a special key at three positions in each room before the upper bed B #2 can be unlocked and these locks are preferably under control of the car porter and impossible to be operated by the occupants of the room. In order to stop and hold bed B #2 in its lowered or sleeping position locks are fastened to the partition walls I6 and tie the adjacent partition walls together, thus stitfening the same while providing rests upon which the bed B #2 will be held when in lowered position.

For smooth easy operation of the beds it will, of course, be desirable that the lead screws 36 be well oiled either with grease or graphite, and since the slots 20 and 22 are necessary to accom- `modate the bed arms, it will be obvious that the cause the fabric parts to separate and the other will cause the parts to again be closed. Since these slides will be located in the plane of the bed to which they are attached, it is obvious that anyone watching the operation of the bed will never see anything except the closed fabric both above and below the moving bed.

The under surface of beds B #l and B #2 is finished so as to blend into the room decorations and may carry lights supplied by current either directly through the lead screws or through sliding contacts. In this way overhead lights will be provided for the room and due to the position of the beds in the ceiling zone the ceiling will necessarily be much lower than the average room now in use on the railroads. Such low ceiling will give the effect of increasing the dimensions of the room, that is, to a person occupying the room it will seem much larger than does a high ceiling room.

From the preceding description it; will be seen that a car has been provided with a large number of rooms therein having beds for individual occupancy extending longitudinally of the car and moving from an inoperative position in the ceiling of the room to an operative position between the floor and ceiling. In case the room is being occupied by a single person it is only necessary to fold the chairs C and close all cabinet doors, after which a switch may be operated causing rotation of motor 62. This motor is, of course, of the reversible type and when rotating in the lowering direction will cause the screws 36 to rotate in such a direction as to lower bed B #l which is directly connected to the lead screws.v The motor will continue to operate until bed B #l has been completely lowered and comes to rest upon blocks 38. Safety devices (not shown) may be applied either to the motor or to blocks 38 so as to stop rotation of the motor when the bed B #l comes to rest sistem esta the-"tineke In easethere' are tweeersrjis 'upygth'e V`1"o'0`hi the conductor or' porterwll atthe timeof tak'i'ig tickets 'unlock the toiibed 3*#2' by" rotation" 'of lock members 76v and" 841 When vthel tp'bed has been unlocked and theoc= c'pants oi? the room desire thebed in operative position thesame lowering button'or swit'chwil-l again be'op'erated ahdbedsB #l andB'tZ Will lower as'a unit until be'dB #2 cornes to Vrest-in itsepeiative position threugn the engagement' of ledges '43 'or "l'with' Stop lugs#` 9i) 'fastened 't6 the partition Walls. Bed B #l will continue lowering until it hascome to rest'up'on blocks 3 8. Reversal or thema-'tor- 'wiu cause the 'imveretiV tees te be nieves inte the ceiiingpesitien. in case trl-sten B #lnlyjhas' been lowered it will travelvrctly ep" te its' final Aposition as shown in Figs.' 3v and 4 whichitsiiinde surface 'forms the''ceiling'I of the 'in. In"caSQhoweveb'e'dB #2' is' thelweid pbsitrl bed B #l Y'Willv i'zifv lllp'vl'rfa',r'dly"iiitil th fi'lial 'Surfaces @E3 of its" airs engag the" lteh- 'sions' M "of bed B #2, after which thtw'f W lise a'suits t their final Stored pSti. The Iks for the bed B #2 preferably will not the of bed BV #2 automatically, VlOl'lt"Ii'liis'tfloe Y lnovd t their locked p'sitn by the' 'cfic'torbi 'car attendant. During the raising andibwng offth beds, whether singly r'in unison, the 4sItS ZU'aIid' 22wi1lappeai" Vto be Closed diie tthe sIt closers att'aclfied either to the bed or to 'the bed arms, thi'ls the 'roin Will always display substanrtially'sirboth end walls vwithout anyV unsightly S1'ts` onpeiatingiechanism being Visible. .[t is, of course obvious that spring pressedY metal flaps Aor resilient material 'such' as 'rubber may be used n'plae of the fabric With attached 1deaSIteneIS mense thse'slots. Y y

' Whilthe improved bed arrangement has been described more or less in detail with specific refere'nce' to'th'eV iigures, it is obvious that various "I'n'dilcations, other than those vshowin and de- 'scibdg'in'ay be made and all such modifications are contemplated as will fall within the scope of me renewing eiaims.

"What is claimed is:

1. A railway car having a central aisle deiined byaisle walls, space between the aisle walls and sidewalls, pairs of transverse partitions dividing 'saidspace into rooms with one partition of adja-y cent pairsdefining the end wallsof a room, verti- Acal slots in said transverse partitions, a bed positiond horizontally in the room and substantially iilli'ng the space between the four wallso-f the room, armsextending from the bed through said slots, and operating means'located between the partitions. constituting a pair at each end of a room, said operating means engaging said arms whereby said bed may be moved vertically from an operative to an inoperative position wherein the under surface forms the ceiling of the` room.

2. A railway car having a central aisle dened by aisle walls, space between the aisle walls and sidewalls, pairs of transverse partitions dividing said space into rooms with one partition fadja- -c'ent pairs'deiining the endv walls-of a room, vertical vslots in said transverse partitions, a bed posi- Yti'oned horizontally-in the room and substantially llingthe spacebetween the four wallsffof :the room; arms extending Afrom the bed through said slotsr operatingwmeans located between the parti- 'tiens constituting a pair at each end of a room, fsaid operatingmeansengaging said arms' whereby said bed may be moved vertically from an operative to an inoperative position wherein the under surface forms the ceiling of the room, and means 'cldsing-said slots 'substantially throughout their length' exceptin the immediate zone of 'said' arms.

3. A railway car having a centralaisle'd'ened by aisle walls, space 'between the aisle'walls'and side walls, pairs of transverse: partitions'dividing said' spaceinto rooms with one partition of adjacent pairsdeinirig the 'end walls of a room,A vertical `slots'in said Vtransverse' partitions, a bed' positioned horizontally in the room' andfsubstantally llihg the Space between the fur Walls ''f 'the room, arms extending from Athe bedthroiigh said slots, operating meansV located between the partitions constituting' a pair at leach'endofA a room, said perating'me'ans' engaging said arms whereby said bed may be moved vertically from an opera-i- -tiv t an inoperative position wherein the under surface formsthec'eiling of fthe room, Yslide "fastener ineans olosingfsaid slots to conceal Asaid operating frieans',` V'and operators for saidslide Yfasteners secured to said bed to-open and close said slide 'fastener means in accordance' withfthe movement Vof the bed.A

4. A- railway 'car having a central aisle defined by aisle walls,-spacebetv.1een the aisle walls and sidewalls, pairs of transverse partitions dividing said space -into rooms with one partition of vadjacent pairs defining the end walls of aroom vertical slots in said transverse partitions,a iirst. bed positioned horizontallyin the room and substantially iiiling the space between the four wallsv ofthe room in the plane of the bed, a-"seoond bed of substantially the same dimensionspositionedabove said viirst bed, saidrbeds being incontact when in inoperative position with the lower surface of the first bed forming the ceiling for the room, arms extending from the -lo'eds through said slots, operating means located `1oe-- 'tween the partitions constituting a p'air at each.

in the' plane of the bed, a second bed of substantially the same dimensions positioned above Vvsaidr'st bed, saidbeds being' closelyadjacent veach other when in their inoperative position with the lower surface of the first bed forming the ceiling for the room, screw means 'located between 'the partitions constituting a' pair' at each end of a room and accessible through 'said slots, and arms secured to said beds and-e5:-

tend'ing through said slots into engagement with said screws, the arms of said first bed vhaving rthreaded VVengagement with said screw means whereby 'the rst bed may be 'raised or lowered 'and the' arms of said second bed Yhaving'sliding engagement with the screw means. 1

GQA'railway oar having a central aisledeiind by aisle walls, space betweenthe' aisle 'walls'and side walls, pairs of transverse partitionsdividing said space into roomswith one 'partition of adjacent pairs'dening the Vend walls 'of aroo'm, vertical slots in said transverse partitions, anrs't 'bed positioned horizontally inthe rooir'ran'd substantiallyilling the 'spacefbetweenthe fo'urfwalls in the plane of the bed, a second bed of substantially the same dimensions positioned above said rst bed, said beds being closely adjacent each other when in their inoperative position with the lower surface of the first bed forming the ceiling for the room, screw means located between the partitions constituting a pair ateach end of a room and accessible through said slots, and arms secured to said beds and extending through said slots into engagement with said screws, the arms of said rst bed having threaded engagement with said screw means whereby the rst bed may be raised or lowered and the arms of said second bed having sliding engagement with the screw means, and means to retain said second bed in raised position independent of the raising or lowering of said first bed.

7. A railway car having a central aisle defined by aisle walls, space between the aisle walls and side walls, pairs of transverse partitions dividing said space into rooms with one partition of adjacent pairs deiining the end walls of a room, vertical slots in said transverse partitions, a first bed positioned horizontally in the room and substantially lling the space between the four walls in the plane of the bed, a second bed of substantially the same dimensions positioned above said iirst bed, said beds being closely adjacent each other when in their inoperative position with the lower surface of the first bed forming the ceiling for the room, screw means located between the partitions constituting a pair at each end of a room and accessible through said slots, and arms secured to said beds and extending through said slots into engagement with said screws, the arms of said rst bed having threaded engagement with said screw means whereby the rst bed may be raised or lowered and the arms of said second bed having sliding engagement with the screw means, and means to retain said second bed in an intermediate position in the room and in vertically spaced relationship to said first bed when lowered into an operative position.

8. A railway car having a central aisle defined by aisle walls, space between the aisle walls and side walls, pairs of transverse partitions dividing 1 said space into rooms with one partition of adjacent pairs dening the end walls of a room, vertical slots in said transverse partitions, a rst bed positioned horizontally in the room and substantially filling the space between the four walls in the plane of the bed, a second bed of substantially the same dimensions positioned above said rst bed, said beds being closely adjacent each other when in their inoperative position with the lower surface of the first bed forming the ceiling for the room, screw means located between the partitions constituting a pair at each end of a room and accessible through said slots, and arms secured to said beds and extending through said slots into engagement with said screws, the arms of said first bed having threaded engagement with said screw means whereby the first bed may be raised or lowered and the arms of said second bed having sliding engagement with the screw means, and means to retain said second bed in raised position independent of the raising or lowering of said first bed, said means being releasable to permit said second bed to be lowered during partial lowering of said first bed.

9. A bed arrangement comprising fixed vertical end walls in spaced apart relation, vertical 8 slots extending through said end walls, operating means located adjacent said slots and on the opposite side of `the end Walls from the space therebetween, a bed substantially spanning the space between end walls, arms secured to said bed and extending through said slots into en gagement with said operating means for vertical movement thereby, and means closing said vertical slots above and below said arms in unison with and during vertical movement of the arms.

10. A bed arrangement comprising xed vertical end walls in spaced apart relation, vertical slots extending through said end walls, operating means located adjacent said slots and behind the plane of the end walls, a bed substantially spanning the space between end walls, arms secured to said bed and extending through said slots into engagement with said operating means for vertlcal movement thereby, and means closing said vertical slots above and below said arms during vertical movement of the arms, said means including a slide fastener opening ahead of and closing behind said arms in accordance with the vertical movement of said bed arms.

11. A bed arrangement comprising vertical end walls, vertical slots in said end walls, operating means located adjacent said slots and behind the plane of the end Walls, a iirst bed, a second bed above said rst bed, both said beds substantially spanning the space between said end walls, arms secured to said beds and extending through said slots into engagement with said operating means, the arms of said first bed being vertically movable by said operating means to raise and lower the bed while the arms of said second bed have sliding movement relative to the operating means, and means selectively retaining said second bed in raised position during lowering of said rst bed.

12. A bed arrangement comprising vertical end walls, vertical slots in said end walls, operating means located adjacent said slots and behind the plane of the end walls, a rst bed, a second bed above said rst bed, both said beds substantially spanning the space between said end walls, arms secured to said beds and extending through said slots into engagement with said operating means, the arms of said rst bed being vertically movable by said operating means to raise and lower the bed while the arms of said second bed have sliding movement relative to the operating means, means selectively retaining said second bed in raised position during lowering of said first bed, and additional means retaining said second bed in a preselected lowered position during continued lowering of said ilrst bed.

ROBERT A. SHIELDS.

REFERENCES CITED The following,r references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 22,693 Baker Jan. 25, 1859 319,711 Hazelton June 9, 1885 403,265 Harris May 14, 1889 477,157 Sneeker June 14, 1892 520,760 Poor May 29, 1894 550,863 Burton Dec. 3, 1895 867,409 Poor 1 Oct. 1, 1907 924,823 Pearson June 15, 1909 2,385,816 Krupp Oct. 2, 1945 

